Random thoughts and ramblings of an avid cyclist, bike shop owner and mechanic, lover of the outdoors, etc.

Saturday, April 19, 2008

Re-visiting a pasttime

Today, for the first time in a long time, my best pal Steve and I got together and tossed a Frisbee around. Back when we were in college together at Towson State University near Baltimore, we spent a LOT of time engaged in this activity... especially, it seemed, when an exam was looming! I have fond memories of many, many sessions, often late at night, out on the field in front of our dorm, throwing, running, and catching. I was never much good at any sort of fancy catching, but I did get pretty good at a wide variety of throws.

You never would have known that for the first few minutes today... passerby might even have wondered if either of us had EVER thrown a Frisbee in our lives. My first tosses were spectacularly bad, in both distance and accuracy. Even the basic back hand flip throw, I couldn't do straight and far. It was kind of stunning, and showed just how rusty I'd gotten since the last time I played Frisbee.

It only took a few minutes, however, to get the hang of it again. Before long, both Steve and I were throwing more good throws than bad, and even making a few darned good catches. And while I'm sure I wasn't chasing the disc with the grace and speed of my youth, I generally managed to run down most of the stray throws, and snag them from the air.

1 comment:

Hello. This post is likeable, and your blog is very interesting, congratulations :-). I will add in my blogroll =). If possible gives a last there on my blog, it is about the GPS, I hope you enjoy. The address is http://gps-brasil.blogspot.com. A hug.

Me at the 2009 Brompton World Championship

About Me

I'm a fiftysomething guy who loves bicycles and just about everything related to bicycles. I used to work in the field of theatrical technical production (scenery and lighting, primarily), but in the last 5 years have begun a career in the bicycle industry. I'm now the owner of bikes@vienna, a small, independent bike shop in Vienna, VA, that specializes in what other shops don't carry... specifically, recumbents and folding bikes. We also cater to folks with special needs who want to enjoy the outdoors on two or three wheels. When I'm not riding or working on bikes, I enjoy hiking and other outdoor activities, as well as reading and just hanging out with my cat.

What will you find here?

In general you can expect to see observations about what's going on in my life, as well as information and thoughts related to bicycles and bicycle repair and construction. I also seem to write a lot about Tybalt, my cat, or so I have been told.

What's with the name?

Well, I chose "Spokes of a Wheel" for several reasons... First, because I love bicycles, and in particular, the bicycle wheel. They are just amazing works of technology and art, in my opinion. Second, in a typical bicycle wheel, spokes radiate outward from a center, and cross and touch each other as they do... kinda like people, no? Finally, I am a native of the DC area, and I have always found it humorous that people try to explain the street "system" there as "like spokes in a wheel". Look at it sometime... or better yet, drive it, and tell me where you've seen such a bizarrely spoked wheel!